Congress on Monday released the anthem for the 3,500-km Bharat Jodo Yatra and said there is no need for ‘Congress Jodo’ as the party stands united. Addressing a press conference here at the party headquarters, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh launched the three-minute video anthem of the Yatra, which will go on for 150 days from Kanyakumari to Jammu and Kashmir.
Asserting that the “party stands united”, Ramesh, who is also the Rajya Sabha MP, said, “Party is strong and united. With whom (BJP chief JP) Nadda meets and talks, he knows. Congress is united. And those who are not satisfied keep on issuing statements.”
He said, “We are a democratic party. We don’t silence voices. Those who are not satisfied issue statements, while some write letters or tweets. This is a democratic system. And we try to take all people together. We try to reach out to all people.”
Ramesh said, “I feel every Congress leader is involved in the Bharat Jodo Yatra. And that is our only aim now because Congress is united.” He said that Congress is a huge family and people in the party are of different views.
“And it is a democratic party. People do their ‘mann ki baat’ openly, some write letters, some tweet and some give interviews which reflects democracy. There is no autocracy in our party and we try to make them comfortable but some leave the party by abusing it and I don’t want to comment on them,” he said, without naming Ghulam Nabi Azad, who left the grand old party after over a five decade association with it. “But saying that Congress jodo should be our priority is wrong as our priority is Bharat Jodo,” he added.
Azad, a member of the G23 group on August 26, resigned from all posts of the party and accused new coterie of inexperienced sycophants, who have started running the affairs of the grand old party.
Azad also said that former party chief Rahul Gandhi’s childish behaviour of tearing the ordinance copy contributed significantly to the defeat of the UPA Government in 2014 that was at the receiving end of a campaign of calumny and insinuation from a combination of the forces of the right wing and certain unscrupulous corporate interests.
Ramesh also said that the website of Bharat Jodo Yatra is very important and it will live stream the programme of the yatra. The yatra take place between 7 am and 10.30 am and 3.30 pm and 6.30 pm. This website will be telecast live. A Tamil song will be released in Tamil Nadu, then in Malyalam in Kerala and Kannada in Karnataka of Bharat Jodo Yatra when the rally reach these states.
He also said that Bharat Jodo Yatra is not ‘mann ki baat’ but it is about the issues of people and their concerns. “What people’s concerns are and their issues will be brought to Delhi, as there will be no long speeches. We are going to listen to people of the country during the Bharat Jodo Yatra,” the Congress leader said.
He said that Rahul Gandhi will reach Kanyakumari on September 7 at 3 pm. Before reaching Kanyakumari, he will be in Sriperumbudur where a prayer meeting will take place for one hour. Rahul Gandhi’s father and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated in Sriperumbudur on May 21, 1991.
Rahul Gandhi will also visit Vivekanand Rock Memorial, Thiruvaliar memorial and Kamraj memorial. He will also visit Gandhi mandapam where he will be joined by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel. They will hand him an Indian national flag made of khadi, and not made of polyester from China, Ramesh said.
Targeting the BJP, he said, “Real and fake nationalism will be exposed as who uses khadi flag and who uses polyester flag made in China. Rahul Gandhi will address a public meeting in Kanyakumari on September 7 evening.” He said that every day, the party leaders will travel approximately 22 km.
Hitting out at the government over its decision on posts of over 3,000 CISF personnel deployed in India’s 65 civil airports to be abolished, he said, “This is the result of privatisation of airports. And this is the beginning. Congress talks of Bharat Jodo, and the news of CISF gives indication of Bharat todo.”
On the election for the post of Congress party president, Ramesh said it will take place if it is needed. “On October 17, all Bharat Jodo Yatris will be in Karnataka and if the election is needed, they will vote in Bengaluru. We have asked Madhusudan Mistry to accommodate this,” Ramesh said.
“Many people have given statements that they want to contest. They are welcome; they should contest as this is their democratic right. When they fill in the form, they will get the electoral rolls,” Ramesh said as Manish Tewari, Karti Chidambaram and Shashi Tharoor sought the publication of the electoral rolls.